Mississippi Territory

The Mississippi Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from 7 April 1798 to 10 December 1817. The region was claimed by Spain until Pinckney's Treaty was signed in 1795, upon which the state of Georgia laid claim to the present-day states of Alabama and Mississippi. However, a new territory was created in 1798, and Georgia was forced to relinquish its claims in 1802. In 1804, the United States annexed the northern parts of the territory following the Louisiana Purchase from France, and it also occupied Spanish-held West Florida in 1810 and Mobile in 1812, claiming that the region were included in the purchase. In 1814, the USA confirmed its control over the region by defeating the Creeks at Horseshoe Bend, and the USA controversially occupied the Spanish fort at Pensacola after it was alleged that the British were using the fort to supply the hostile Native Americans with weapons. In 1817, Mississippi was granted statehood, becoming the 20th state; Alabama was admitted as the 22nd state in 1819.